THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Thank you. Good morning and
welcome to the White House. Today we're taking action to strengthen
America's economy, to build confidence with America's investors, and to
create jobs for America's workers. The Terrorism Risk Insurance Act
will provide coverage for catastrophic losses from potential terrorist
attacks. Should terrorists strike America again, we have a system in
place to address financial losses and get our economy back on its feet
as quickly as possible.

With this new law, builders and investors can begin construction in
real estate projects that have been stalled for too long, and get our
hard-hats back to work. (Applause.)

I appreciate members of my Cabinet who are here who worked on this
bill -- Paul O'Neill, and Don Evans and Elaine Chao. Thank you all
for coming.

I appreciate the members of Congress who are here, particularly
those on the stage with me who worked hard to get the bill passed --
Chairman Paul Sarbanes, Chris Dodd from Connecticut who did a lot of
work to get the bill done. (Applause.) Senator Harry Reid worked hard
on this piece of legislation, as well. I appreciate Chairman Mike
Oxley from the House who also worked, along with Senator Dodd, to get
this important piece of legislation passed. Mike, thank you for your
leadership on this issue. (Applause.)

As well, we're joined by other key players from the House of
Representatives, Sue Kelly, Chris Shays, John LaFalce, and Ken
Bentsen. These members of Congress put the interests of the country
ahead of partisanship, and as a result of their hard work I'm able to
sign the bill today. I want to thank you for your leadership.
(Applause.)

I also want to thank the union leaders who are here today, people
with whom we've worked hard to get this done; leaders who put the
interest of their membership right on the line -- Doug McCarron --
appreciate your leadership, Doug. He's the General President of the
United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners. Frank Hanley is the
General President of the International Union of Operating Engineers, is
with us today. Joe Hunt is the General President of the Iron Workers
International Union. Ed Sullivan, who is the President of the Building
and Construction Trades Department of the AFL-CIO; Terry O'Sullivan,
who is the General President of the Laborers International Union of
North America.

I appreciate the workers from the United Brotherhood of Carpenters
and Joiners and Iron Workers, and the Building and Construction Trade
Department of the AFL-CIO, who are with us today representing thousands
of people who are going to go back to work thanks to this piece of
legislation. Thanks for your leadership, and thanks for your
presence. (Applause.)

The attacks of September the 11th, 2001, devastated lives, leveled
buildings and seriously, seriously disrupted our economy. Businesses
suffered. The stock market halted trading. Many insurance companies
stopped covering builders and real estate owners against the risk of
attack. Premiums skyrocketed. Protections were diminished. Across
America, hospitals and office buildings and malls and museums and
construction jobs and many transportation companies have had difficulty
finding terrorism insurance.

More than $15 billion in real estate transactions have been
canceled or put on hold because owners and investors could not obtain
the insurance protection they need. Commercial construction is at a
six-year low, and thousands of hard-hat workers have been kept off the
job. Commercial mortgage-backed securities have seen their bond
ratings lowered, hurting many Americans invested in the bond market,
including teachers and police officers and firefighters, who have lost
money in their pension plans.

By helping to ensure that terrorism insurance is affordable and
available, the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act will permit many
construction projects to move forward and to help this economy grown.
Billions of dollars in investments will be more secure. The nation's
hard-hats will get back to work, being able to put food on the table
for their families. Investors in markets will have greater confidence
that our economy is strong enough to withstand a future attack. And
that's important.

This new law will also help the economy in the legal system by
discouraging abusive lawsuits. Civil cases resulting from a terrorist
attack will be combined in a single federal court. Lawyers will be
prevented from shopping for courts with a reputation for outrageous
awards. Judgments and rulings will be more consistent.

It's important for our taxpayers to understand that taxpayer
dollars will not be used to pay punitive damages. I'm grateful to the
members of Congress who put the interest of the workers and taxpayers
ahead of lawyers. I look forward to working with the new Congress on
stronger measures to prevent abusive lawsuits. And today I'm taking
steps to ensure that no taxpayer dollar will be spent on legal
settlements without the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury. The
Secretary will work to ensure that settlements are fair to victims, not
windfalls for the legal class of America. The act of Congress I sign
today will encourage greater competition in the insurance market and
add strength to our economy.

But there's more to do. I'll work with Democrats and Republicans
in the next Congress to pass a growth-in-jobs package early next year.

My administration is determined to make America safer, to make our
economy stronger. And we're making progress on both fronts. America
has entered a new kind of war, requiring aggressive action abroad and
active defense at home. Yesterday I signed into law the new Department
of Homeland Security, to organize our government for the long-term
challenge of protecting America. Today, with terrorism insurance,
we're defending America by making our economy more secure. Both these
achievements show the unity of our nation in a time of testing, and our
resolve to lead America to a better day.

I'm now pleased to sign the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002.
(Applause.)